I always dreamed of being a cultural anthropologist,

but when I was 17, MTV gave me a camera and put me on the road to produce an episode of their series MADE. I had no money, no crew and had to shoot/producer/sound mix/edit. Getting that camera was like finding my paint brush and I learned that you don’t need money or toys as long as you have a strong story and an emotional way of telling it.

Today’s challenge is the ever changing sea of formats and content. It’s easy to forget with these new tools and delivery systems that we are still teaching people through narrative. We get stuck in the past, obsess over film grain and movies from the 70s but forget that we are the luckiest group of filmmakers in history. Since beginning my career, I’ve lived with mole people, taught high school, raided drug cartels with the DEA, and captured the last days of NASA’s space shuttles in 3D. For the first time, we have the ability to create images no one has ever seen before and deliver in whatever way makes most sense for the story.

I really do believe if you could go back in time and tell Kubrick or Welles about the tools we have today they would be right here with us, working everyday to find a new better way to tell stories and it’s only going to get better.

RIGHT TO WIN

My passion is working to help high school students any way I can. My foundation, Right to Win, sponsors student athletes in Ohio dealing with controversial Pay-to-Play fees. In the last two years we have helped over 20 students back on the field. Check out our website to learn more about our mission.